Radical candor is a form of vulnerability.
In business, we don’t see much radical candor or speaking truth to power, because we’ve been trained to bow down to authority and to show up at work with our armor on.
Dr. Brene Brown is an authority on vulnerability. She said, “Vulnerability is the birthplace of love, belonging, joy, courage, empathy, and creativity.”
Herein lies one of the toughest conundrums in the ad business. One must develop a thick skin to survive the routine criticism and periodic hostilities from unkind peers. At the same time, one needs to be ultra sensitive in order to have compassion for the customer, your team, and yourself.
Article Group Gets It
The agency business has one too many people who like to enter the room and fill it with bluster and jargon, probably to mask their own insecurities. What I don’t see much of is genuine bravery and transparency. Because it is so rare, it is also notable when encountered.
Joe Lazar, Co-Founder and Carpenter at Article Group wrote a long list of mistakes that his agency made along the way.
Here’s one:
12. Didn’t clarify what we were selling
We confused some of our clients and potential clients by using mealy-mouth language to describe our offering. And so we’d end up in a conference room and an executive would say ‘Article Group — you’re the guys who do content, right?’ That was never a good sign. We do so much more than content, but we hadn’t done the hard work of being explicit about what we sell.
“We hadn’t done the hard work of being explicit about what we sell.” Wow, that’s the raw deal and something that many agency rainmakers and CEOs can relate to because specializing may feel like a trap to some, when in fact it’s an opening to more and better clients.
Beto Gets It
In the political sphere, there’s even less humility than we see in business. This leaves people wondering what to make of Beto O’Rourke’s road trip, which he’s currently chronicling on Medium.
Have been stuck lately. In and out of a funk. My last day of work was January 2nd. It’s been more than twenty years since I was last not working. Maybe if I get moving, on the road, meet people, learn about what’s going on where they live, have some adventure, go where I don’t know and I’m not known, it’ll clear my head, reset, I’ll think new thoughts, break out of the loops I’ve been stuck in.
Here’s a guy who lots of people think can be the next president the United States, and instead of meeting with advisors, he’s on a solo road trip in search of himself.
— Beto O’Rourke (@BetoORourke) January 18, 2019
I tip my hat to Beto and to all who walk bravely in this world. Our media is jamming us with nothing but noise and our federal government is in the deepest shithole since Vietnam and Watergate.
We, the people, are desperate for something wholesome again, something we can believe in. It’s scary and dangerous to place this heavy load on any one individual, but it’s encouraging to know there are people in the world who are perfectly willing to face their demons and admit they don’t know everything.